Whiteworms?

Discussion in 'Beginner Discussions' started by pictus, May 15, 2010.

  1. pictus

    pictus

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    Hi guys. I'm in Pta and I have looked all over for a whiteworm starter culture? Does anyone know where I could get?
     
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  3. Vis

    Vis Gerhard

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    Darryn was going to send some to a few people but he has gone missing for the last month. Do not know
    if someone got some though.
     
  4. snyper564

    snyper564 Dwarf Puffer

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    im looking for some to :)
     
  5. Dirk

    Dirk Dwarf Catfish

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    I have a culture, but it needs rejuvenation after my visit to Madagascar, I need to start new cultures. Give me 3 to 4 weeks and then ask me again and I will most probably be able to help you.

    Kind regards,

    Dirk
     
  6. Stormer

    Stormer

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    *bump*

    What exactly is whiteworm cultures for?,can i feed them to my young convicts?,can they live in my filter?
     
  7. Dirk

    Dirk Dwarf Catfish

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    Whiteworms are highly nutritious foods for any tropical fishes, but they must be fed with extreme care. They are rich in proteins and particularly in fats, but they completely lack any roughage which is dangerous to say the least.

    A simple comparison to the value of white worms for feeding of tropical fishes is to compare it to the foods that we eat. Let is say that you were a poor undernourished sucker and you would eat a hamburger and chips. Obviously, this would do you a lot of good. However, if you were to go and eat a burger and chips every night, then this would have its negative consequences as you would possibly become overweight, be constipated and would most likely developed artherosclerosis and suffer a heart attack.

    This is exactly what applies when feeding white worms to fishes. If you have sensitive fishes such as discus that struggle to get into breeding condition, then feeding white worms makes a lot of sense. However, you would NEVER only feed white worms even to discus and you need to feed some other foods which supply roughage. However, if I am to be quite honest, convict cichlids are of the hardiest tropical fishes that you can find and feeding them white worms would be a waste. They can eat any high quality food and will breed like rabbits and grow like weeds, so for convicts this would not be worth the effort because growing white worms is not all that easy.

    Finally, they will very definitely NOT grow in your filter as they are definitely not aquatic worms. They need an aerated medium and cannot survive for more than a few minutes under water.

    Kind regards,

    Dirk
     
  8. Stormer

    Stormer

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    Okay,thanks Prof Dirk.

    P.S Is a white worm cultre the same thing as an micro worm culture?

    Sorry for all the questions but i never had any worm cultures.
     
    Last edited: Jun 21, 2010
  9. Dirk

    Dirk Dwarf Catfish

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    No, a white worm culture is very definitely not the same as a micro worm culture.

    There are other worms as well, grindal worms, banana worms and a few more, do some googling. They require very different conditions for culturing them, particularly with regard to temperature and they differ very much in size therefore they are used for fishes of different sizes.

    Kind regards,

    Dirk
     
  10. Stormer

    Stormer

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    okay,thank you very much Dirk.
     
  11. Zippy320

    Zippy320

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    What does a white worm look like?
     
  12. oscar freak

    oscar freak

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    I got some in my tank u can have them
     
  13. Khalid

    Khalid Loricariidae

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    make Google images your friend

     
  14. Dirk

    Dirk Dwarf Catfish

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    Zippy,

    Google on the internet, there are loads of pics!

    Oscar freak,

    White worms last for about 5 minutes in a tank so I do not think that you have them in your tank.

    Kind regards,

    Dirk
     
    Last edited: Jul 1, 2010
  15. oscar freak

    oscar freak

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    Its a worm and its white lol
     
  16. Linxie

    Linxie

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    Hi Oscar Freak. Google detritus worms and see if it isn't those. I have them in my pico :(
     
  17. oscar freak

    oscar freak

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    they harmless is what i hear linxie
     
  18. Stormer

    Stormer

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    I have white worms against my 300L glass and i have tiny black worms swimming in the tank.Parasite perhaps? (the black ones)
     
  19. Marco

    Marco Retired Moderator

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    no Stormer, dont worry, those are called plantaria. You can google it
     
  20. Gareth

    Gareth Angel Freak

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    I got rid of the white with some guppies and corries, they munched them off the glass.
     

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